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Home , Central Italy, Culture of Italy

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Introduction & Overview Group Size: 12 Students & Dr. Michael Gunderson May 8th – 18th, 2017 “Made in : Agricultural Economics in ” is a 10-day faculty-led student trip through the Italian regions of , , & . This is a unique opportunity for a select group of Purdue University students to experience Italy in an authentic and immersive way.

The primary academic purpose of this program is to educate students on Italian artisanal food products through in-field experiences and workshops. Topics of study include local agriculture practices, small-scale sustainable food production, food-marketing, and international competition.

Throughout the trip, students will meet with various local producers and companies to learn about the production, marketing, and distribution of select local and international products. Of special note, students will visit producers of Pecorino Toscana , Brunello di & Martelli . There will also be a handful of hands-on activities including a cooking lesson, a cheese production workshop, and a lesson on making authentic Italian . By the end of the trip, students will have a strong understanding of the numerous artisanal producers operating and their place in the international food value chain.

Although the trip’s primary goals are academic, a wide array of cultural activities will be included throughout the trip to give students a wider appreciation of the food, history and of Italy.

Suggested Trip Outline & Ideas Monday, May 8 Depart USA Thursday, May 11 Tuscany Depart from our home cities in the United States on an overnight flight to , This morning we will visit a local olive mill to learn about production of extra-virgin Italy. If you would like to depart early for Italy, contact Remarkable Journeys about olive oil. The mill owner will guide us around his factory explaining how olive oil is setting up a hotel and tours in Florence (additional cost). Professor Mike Gunderson produced and how he differentiates his olive oil from producers around the world. and your travel coordinators will be arriving in Florence on Sunday, May 7 to Next we head to a producer of Pecorino Romana cheese. Guided by the owner, we welcome early arrivals. will tour the fields and farms as we develop a better appreciation of animal husbandry and cheese production in the area.

Following our morning tours, we will transfer to the village of Montalcino, a walled Tuesday, May 9 Arrive Tuscany medieval town that dates back to the Etruscans (4th Century BC). It is in this region On arrival in Florence, we will be met at the airport for a private transfer to our that Tuscany’s powerhouse red , the , accommodations. We will be staying at a Tuscan “agriturismo” originates. Being one of the first granted DOCG located just outside of the town of Chiusi. The agriturismo is run by (Controlled Designation of Origin) status in Italy, it is no surprise an Italian family who work together to produce high-quality food that this variety is considered, by many, the premier wine of Italy. products such as wine and olive oil. The remainder of the day is at Following a short visit of the town, we will make our way to a our leisure to stroll through the forest trails nearby, take a dip in the nearby winery for a tour and dinner with the owners. This will be swimming pool, or simply relax after a long flight. This evening, we a fascinating stop for those interested in how is will enjoy a casual reception and dinner at our farm regulated and sold throughout the world. accommodations. Tuscany Overnight: Tuscan Agriturismo Overnight: Tuscan Agriturismo Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Included Meals: Dinner

Friday, May 12 Umbria Wednesday, May 10 Tuscany After breakfast, we will depart for Umbria, Italy’s “Green Heart” , the only Italian This morning we commence our formal research. Appropriately, region that borders neither the sea nor another country. Known for it’s we will begin on a small-scale organic farm located in the fertile landscapes, traditions and history, we will spend the next few days hills of Tuscany. Hiking though sloping hills and forests, we will immersing ourselves in this new territory as we compare and contrast be guided by the local proprietor as he explains the agricultural the region with neighboring Tuscany. practices used on his farm and in the region. Perugia Our first stop will be our accommodations in Perugia where we will Following our morning tour we will learn how to prepare our own check-in to our hotel and get acquainted with our new host city. meals with a private cooking class. Our class will use fresh, local Perugia is the capital city of the region of Umbria and thus plays host ingredients and combine education and fun as we prepare our to wealth of history and architectural styles. It’s historic center is a dinner. travelers dream of cobblestone streets, winding stairways and beautiful piazzas lined by mansions and cafés.

Overnight: Tuscan Agriturismo After a brief rest, we will have a group lunch with our hosts from the Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Umbra Institute. After our first taste of local products, we will get a brief lesson on Umbrian food history from a local professor. Next we head to a cheese workshop were we will get hands on experience on cheese production.

This evening we will be free to have dinner on our own.

Overnight: Perugia Hotel Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch swimming in the Mediterranean, basking in the sun on our own waterside boulders or indulging in the tasty local food and wine. Saturday, May 13 Umbria This morning we’ll visit several food producers in Perugia with Professor Elisa Ascione to learn about local producers and typical products (bread, cheese, wine, and ). Overnight: Monterosso Albergo We’ll taste local specialties as we interview the producers. After Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch meeting with local producers, we’ll break off so everyone can get lunch at the market. Tuesday, May 16 This afternoon we get a special lesson on one of Italy’s most Today is an open day to explore the Cinque Terre at leisure. There famous international dishes, pizza! The short lesson includes an are a number of ways to experience the area: by foot, by ferry or by introduction on the , the spatial thermodynamics train. The ideal way to see the beauty of the landscape is by walking Cinque Terre of the oven, and then a few students get to try their hands at the well-laid out trails connecting each village to its neighbors. making the pizza. Dinner is included as we eat our creations. However, for a more relaxed and less strenuous approach, there is a passenger ferry service running between the five villages, providing Overnight: Perugia Hotel a different vantage point of the rugged coastline and charming villages. Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner Overnight: Monterosso Albergo Included Meals: Breakfast Sunday, May 14 Umbria Today we get to visit a wealth of producers in the Umbrian region. We’ll begin by visiting a granarium bakery where well learn about the entire transformation process of Wednesday, May 17 Cinque Terre cereals. Next we will head to Assisi to learn about traditional Umbrian cheese. Today we will be guided tour through a vineyard of a unique Cinque Terre producer. Umbria boasts a long-standing tradition, both in sheep farming and, consequently, We will travel by train to the town of , where we will meet our cheese-making. Among the region’s best known are its caciotta, crescenza, guide who will drive us to his vineyard. As we explore the vineyard, we will learn black truffle cheese, and pecorino. This will be a fascinating stop as we learn about about the labor intensive practices that are used in the terraced vineyards. Many how this producer differentiates their cheeses from local and international Cinque Terre vineyards are planted on perilously steep slopes, so close to the sea that competition. the ocean spray forms a fine mist over the vines. Others enjoy the luxury and relative security of being located on terraces carved painstakingly into the hard cliff faces. Finally we’ll stop at the famous Lungarotti Winery. This is Umbria's premier winery Unsurprisingly, this awkward, inaccessible topography means that vineyard which is credited with earning the region its initial fame, thanks to its pioneering management is done manually, without the aid of tractors or trucks. wines and insatiable drive to promote Umbrian wine and culture. While Lungarotti produces a wide variety of wines (nearly two dozen), liquors and Next we will head to the producer’s cellars to learn about the other gourmet products, the firm is best known for three iconic business side. Here we will learn how the small producer has wines: San Giorgio, Rubesco (Umbria's first DOC-recognized differentiated himself from the market and defied concnetial wine) and Rubesco Vigna Monticchio (a single-vineyard Rubesco wisdom to follow DOC guidelines. This is a fascinating final Riserva). This large –scale producer will be a fascinating comparison as we grasp come to grasp with th diversity of a single comparison to the winery visited in Montalcino as we learn how product in a country as small as Italy. Lunch is included in the tour different factors from soil to business models affect the final product. After the tour, the remainder of the afternoon and evening will be Cinque Terre at your leisure. Don’t wander too far, as this evening the group will Overnight: Perugia Hotel meet in Monterosso for a farewell dinner. Included Meals: Breakfast Overnight: Monterosso Albergo Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Monday, May 15 Cinque Terre After breakfast today we will travel to our next destination, the Italian Riviera and the villages of the Cinque Terre. Along the way, we will stop at a small, family-owned Thursday, May 18 Depart company that produce pasta by traditional, artisanal methods. Martelli makes their Transfers will be provided to for departures to the USA. You are free to pasta by mixing the dough at low temperatures and then extruding it through bronze continue your travels on your own. dies which makes the pasta cling to the sauce instead of sliding off. Martelli is one of the few artisanal pasta producers in Italy that exports their pasta to the United States. Included Meals: Breakfast

Continuing on, we arrive at Monterosso, the northern most of the famed Cinque Terre villages (Monterosso, , Corniglia, , and Riomaggiore). Our activities in the Cinque Terre don’t get much more elaborate than walking from one lovely village to another along trails that afford spectacular vistas, Riomaggiore

Biography of trip host Michael Gunderson Michael Gunderson joined Purdue University as an associate professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics in August 2012. In addition to his responsibilities teaching in Purdue’s undergraduate and graduate classrooms on campus, he is also heavily involved in designing, developing and delivering non-credit, professional development programs through the department’s Center for Food and Agricultural Business.

After earning his doctorate from Purdue in 2006, Mike spent six years in the Food and Resource Economics Department at the University of Florida (UF). While there, he taught undergraduate and graduate courses in agricultural finance, marketing and strategy. Mike’s research focuses on understanding the factors that influence the financial success of agribusiness firms. He has published 20 peer-reviewed articles on topics such as service quality in agribusiness input industries, agricultural land values and agribusiness management.

Summary of Services • Accomodations for 10 Nights • Private tours and guides throughout the trip • Transportation throughout the trip • Meals: 9 Breakfasts, 5 Lunches, 5 Dinners • Entrance and Admission Fees • Gratuities for guides, drivers, hotels & included meals

Price: $3,750 per person Single Supplement applies